In 1991 Chionofuji Mitsugo announced his retirement as a Sumo wrestler.
He had had more than 1,000 wins, which included the longest run of consecutive wins in the post-war era (54) and been a honbasho champion 31 times (there are six honbasho, or tournaments, per year). He was the 54th person to become a Yokozuna – the top rank – in Sumo wrestling’s modern history, and the greatest sumo wrestler of his generation.
Yet he claimed he had lost his fighting spirit, and in a solemn ceremony his topknot was cut off and his career as a fighter was over, for there is no coming back when a Sumo wrestler’s topknot is cut off.